£20,000 Reward Launched to Solve 1986 Birkenhead Murder After Wrongful Conviction Overturned
A substantial reward of £20,000 has been announced by the charity Crimestoppers in a renewed effort to solve a decades-old murder case that led to one of the longest miscarriages of justice in British legal history. The appeal comes forty years after the brutal killing of 21-year-old Diane Sindall in Birkenhead, Merseyside, and follows the quashing of Peter Sullivan's conviction in 2025 after he spent 38 years in prison for a crime he did not commit.
Decades of Injustice and a New DNA Lead
Diane Sindall was murdered in the early hours of Saturday 2 August 1986. Her body was discovered by a member of the public in an alleyway off Borough Road in the Wirral town several hours after she was last seen alive. The young florist had been sexually assaulted and sustained extensive injuries, with a cerebral haemorrhage confirmed as the cause of death.
Peter Sullivan, then aged 30, was convicted of the murder in 1987 and infamously labelled 'The Mersey Ripper' and 'The Beast of Birkenhead'. Despite maintaining his innocence throughout his incarceration, it was not until 2025 that the Court of Appeal overturned his conviction after DNA evidence conclusively proved that another individual was responsible for the crime.
This case now stands as the longest known miscarriage of justice in the United Kingdom, with Sullivan having lost nearly four decades of his life behind bars. Detectives are now intensifying efforts to identify the person to whom the DNA belongs, as it does not match any profiles on the national DNA database, nor any of Diane's family members or her fiancé at the time.
Police Appeal for Information and Witnesses
Merseyside Police's Detective Superintendent Rachel Wilson emphasised the ongoing trauma for Diane's family, who still await answers about who killed her. The investigation team has conducted extensive DNA screening, obtaining voluntary elimination samples from locations including Swansea, Perth, London, Hull, and Newcastle. To date, 461 males have been eliminated from the inquiry, with forensic results pending for a further 43 samples submitted recently.
Detective Superintendent Wilson stated: 'Although it has been nearly 40 years since Diane's murder, we still believe there are people who know what happened, or have their own suspicions, who haven't yet come forward. My message would be 'it is never too late to do the right thing'.'
Police have reconstructed Diane's final movements. On Friday 1 August 1986, she was working a part-time shift at the Wellington pub in Bebington. She left work at 11.45pm in her blue Fiat van, but the vehicle ran out of petrol on Borough Road. Witnesses reported seeing her walking along Borough Road between midnight and 12.20am on the Saturday morning. Her body was found twelve hours later in a nearby alleyway.
On 17 August 1986, property belonging to Diane was recovered on Bidston Hill. The original investigation identified witnesses who had seen a small fire at that location on Sunday 3 August and had observed a man running from the scene.
Specific Appeals and Reward Details
Authorities are urging anyone with information to come forward, particularly:
- Individuals who were on Borough Road on the evening of Friday 1 August or the early hours of Saturday 2 August 1986 and may have seen or heard something suspicious.
- Anyone who can help identify the man seen running away from Bidston Hill on Sunday 3 August 1986.
Detective Superintendent Wilson added: 'We can trace and request a DNA sample from any person you suspect or even a relative if they have passed away or emigrated.'
The £20,000 reward from Crimestoppers is available for information given exclusively to the charity that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for Diane's murder. This reward offer is valid for three months and is set to expire on 22 April 2026.
